The screw sizes refer to the length of the shaft, not the diameter of the head or socket. P5 is the standard pentalobe size for all these screws, regardless of length.

I agree that the notation is a little confusing. I think it's because, with standard sized hardware like for your house, you have shaft diameter (say 1/8" or 3mm) and shaft length (say 3" or 7.5cm). So we're programmed to think of small numbers like that as diameter. But in this case, they're length.

Do you have good Test Point Voltages? It appears there are silver colored Test points on the I/O Board. I am working on a water spill and trying to troubleshoot if both the I/O board and the Logic need replaced.

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There is a nub on the inside of the case which is attached to the battery. When you try to pull it open, it appears to be attached to the plastic casing of the battery, which sometimes splits. I gently unhooked the nub from the battery before removing the case fully. This seems to happen if the battery has suffered some drop damage (plastic parts broken around screws and parts of plastic frame split). Just an FYI in case your lower case doesn't pull away easily.

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Be really careful when reconnecting the I/O board cable connector. The deep connector has a tendency to bend the pins with very little force applied. If this is the case, check to see if the gold pins are bent down, you may only see one row of gold pins vertically, or none.

They can be lifted with a flat head screwdriver bit. Gently slide the bit under the pins, this may need a small amount of pressure depending on how far they are bent down. Lever the pins back to the vertical position.

I found attempting to insert this connector was easier while holding the MacBook on a slight angle to see down the pins as I aligned the connector.

Another way to tell if the I/O connector cable is in place correctly is to run an Apple Hardware Test. Hold down the letter D while booting the mac and follow the prompts. If no issues found, you're all good.

A common error for a misconnected I/O Connector is 4SNS/1/C0000008:TS0P--124. This means the system cannot read the palm temperature sensor. Fix the cable and you're good

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The following connector has an especially deep socket. Use care when disconnecting it.

While gently pulling the I/O board cable upward near its connection to the logic board, use the tip of a spudger to pry upward on alternating sides of the connector to help "walk" it out of its socket.

If you break the ZIF socket, it could be a bad day.... It happened to me. Not one to throw in the towel, I fashioned a hold-down with a length of paperclip held in place by the nearby screw. So far, it is working like a charm. Hopefully, it continues to work and this helps some other poor soul.

Get some electrical tape and cut it down the the width of the ribbon cable fold over one end to create a pull tab. Now place the tape onto the ribbon to give yourself something to pull either in or out as needed. Then you can peel off the tape.

The ribbon connector held in the socket by a tiny square on top, which enters a square hole in the top of the socket. An xacto blade used to pry the top of the connector gently up will help release the connector.

Year, from the top, the ribbon appears to be just the plastic strip. Copper connectors are on the bottom but at first glance it looks like I pulled the connector off the ribbon. Mine pulled straight out away from the connector, no upward angle needed or desired.

Mine was very reluctant... couldn't get any purchase with a spudger, had to use flat tweezers to get enough grip on the cable. Exerted slowly increasing pull, but when it came out, it broke loose suddenly.

On re-assembly, I haven't gotten the speaker or microphone to work. Must have broken the connection, but it looks fine. Ran the hardware diagnostic (holding down "D" at start up) and got the following error code - 4MOT/4/40000002:Exhaust-0

I agree, I found this to be the only critical step of the entire disassembly procedure: I snapped the microphone connector socket off the board despite applying a relatively gentle pull on the cables. Fortunately I did this on a dead MBair from which I wanted to get the display, but now I'm afraid of doing the same damage while installing the display on the target MBair!

Following up on my previous post I'd like to share how I eventually circumvented the risk of snapping the microphone connector socket on the I/O board. Instead of attempting to disconnect the mic (as suggested in this guide, step 14), I did the following: a. remove the battery, b. detach the right speaker, c. detach the microphone from the outer case (for steps b and c I followed the iFixit guide on how to replace a MacbookAir microphone). The advantage is that the microphone can now remain safely connected to the I/O board. Of course when reassembling the mac one has to reverse these extra steps (the microphone can be easily reattached to the case as it has a sticky side). I would strongly advise iFixit to revise this guide accordingly!

I don't think this step is necessary if you aren't seeking to fully remove the I/O board - if you are seeking only to remove the heatsink, you can skip this step, leave this delicate cable attached, then in the next couple steps you'll end up "flipping" the board out of the way, while leaving this cable connected.

Maybe I just lucked out but removing the mic cable was about the same effort as the left speaker cable. I wasn't ready to try Lorenzo's workaround above without a photo guide, so took my chances. Your mileage may vary.

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When following these instructions in reverse, and reinstalling the I/O board, be sure to carefully check and adjust the alignment of the ports on the board with the holes in the case - it is especially obvious if the headphone port is mis-aligned with the case.

Regarding the second photo on step 22, I believe the placement of the spudger is incorrect. If the second photo's purpose is to demonstrate the placement of the spudger described in the second bullet--"...use the tip of a spudger and your fingers to gently remove the display data cable..."-- then such placement could lead to damaging the connector. View this annotated screenshot to see what I'm trying to convey: https://www.evernote.com/shard/s4/sh/1f5....

These screws are easily stripped. If you accidentally push too hard, you will strip the screw when re-attaching. If that happens, get a pair of needle nose pliers and gently work the screw out taking care not to damage the board.

I found it helpful to loosen the 3rd screw of the hinge already a TINY bit. The screws are quite tight so it´s easier to loosen them while the case is lying flat on the surface. This procedure comes in handy in Step 34 where you have to hold the case perpendicular with one hand, while unscrewing this screw with the other hand.

on my Air I dropped water and now the display looks without backlight... I can type with no issue, as well the backlight of the keyboard is working fine, audio too but the display doesn't show the light also if boosted at top. What's happened?

Like in Step28 I found it helpful to loosen the 3rd screw of the hinge already a TINY bit. Comes in handy in Step 33 where you have to hold the case perpendicular with one hand, while unscrewing this screw with the other hand.

During reassembly, once the two screws are in the left and right hinges, close the laptop and flip it over so that the display is down on the table. Run your fingers along the edge of the laptop where the display meets the lower assembly. If it is not flush, loosen the two screws in the hinges slightly and adjust, then retighten.

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Before removing the last display screw, be sure to hold the display and upper case steady with your other hand. Failure to do so may allow the components to fall onto the table, causing potentially expensive damage.

Remove the last 4.9 mm T8 Torx screw securing the display to the upper case.

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My microphone appears slightly different, featuring a ribbon cable which is difficult to re-route when re-assembling.

Under no circumstances try to pull the microphone out using any pulling motion on the cable, as the microphone assembly will come apart in two pieces (as mine did), and will most likely not function on re-assembly (as mine doesn't).

I was hoping there would be a way to take the keyboard apart after step 41. I have a shorted power switch I was hoping to try and clean. $250 to replace the upper case on a Mac that's worth $550 if working and $250 as parts doesn't make sense. Super fun to take this apart though!

I went to my local Fry's Electronics and purchased a Pro's Kit branded "Consumer Electronic Equipment Repair Kit" that had all the necessary bits and tools needed for US$35.

No need to spend $250 for a new upper case, I figured: what did I have to loose?

I found a brand new keyboard $45.95 (included priority shipping) from MCCComputers.com

Steps: Remove keyboard:: CAREFULLY, remove all #000 Philips head screws around the outside edge of the keyboard on the logic board side of top case. Then, i started at one end, four keys at a time and started rocking around the four corners and pressing firmly in sections (from the side where you usually type on the keys, inward) until the rivets started popping out. MAKE SURE YOU ARE DOING THIS IN AN ENVIRONMENT THAT IS CLEAN and SMOOTH SURFACES. They go everywhere!

Reassembly:use 3M #77 adhesive spray on the aluminum casing to reattach and make up for lost rivets. Snap in rivets with flat end of T-15 bit and screw-in edge screws.

On reassembly with a new upper case I spent a long time trying to replace the red-circled screw to hold the fan. After a while I figured out that the new case I purchased from IFIXIT had a small screw already inserted in the socket. Once I removed this extra part everything went smoothly.

I am replacing the backlight keyboard on a mid-2011 Air and inadvertainly knocked off the resistor(?) that is immediately adjacent to the backlight cable socket on the logic board. Is this critical; is there a fix; or do I need to get another logic board?

Just finished… very good guide… takes longer than an hour, for first time anyway. You have to be careful and pay attention. Also, the backlit keyboard costs $17 and new battery $65 both on amazon. Everything works great, like new… however, the keyboard back light is much dimmer and has unevenly lit keys all over the keyboard… wondering if that’s related to the cheap keyboard or something else… any thoughts let us know, thanks!

I accidentally caused a small Bent/cut and scratched at the keyboard ribbon cable edge at the trackpad while trying to remove the retainers. So now some keys are not responding. Is there any way to strip/so something to that ribbon cable to get good connection or do i need to replace the whole keyboard.

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